The Last Element
by Yourss Truly
Summary: AU Aang, Katara, and Sokka are in search of someone to teach Aang Fire Bending, but will Aang's training be enough to defeat his enemies? Or will Aang's anger get the better of him? [Kataang, Zutara]
1. I'll protect you

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"NO! Now stop asking!"

"Okay, okay."

Sokka and Katara had been going on like that for more than 15 minutes when Katara had had enough. She, Sokka and Aang had been traveling in the desert for days, and the three of them were now extremely tired. They were headed towards Ozi's Fire Kingdom in search of someone to teach Aang Fire Bending, the last element he needed to know to complete his Avatar training.

"Does it ever rain in the desert? I could really use some rain. I love rain. Rain... rain…rain…rain…." Sokka said dreamily.

"He's losing it." Katara said.

"No kidding." Aang replied.

Since there was obviously nothing much to do, Aang figured he'd strike up a conversation with Katara.

"Hey, Katara," He began casually.

"Yes Aang?" She said, looking at him with a smile.

"Do you actually think we're going to find someone to teach me Fire Bending? I mean, if we're caught in the Fire Kingdom, we're dead."

"Well," She began, starting to frown. "I'll bet there's at least one decent Fire bender who will teach you. I mean, they can't all be bad, can they?"

"I hope not." Aang said quietly, looking down at the desert sand.

Soon, night fell, and the three friends were preparing to go to sleep. Sokka was still going on about rain.

"Rain… rain… rain… rain…"

"He's starting to annoy me." Aang said to Katara.

"I know the feeling. Goodnight, Aang."

"Goodnight, Katara." And Aang silently watched her as she lay down on the sand and fell asleep. He pulled a blanket out from his bag and put it on her, watching her sleep, protecting her from any harm. He could hear Sokka muttering something about rain in his sleep. Aang looked off into the night.

"Wait a minute." He said as he squinted into the distance. "What is that?"

There was a fire burning some distance away from him. And fire usually means people. Aang got excited and scared all at the same time.

"Katara! Sokka! Wake up!" Aang said as he shook them. "Look!"

"What?" Katara asked, still half-asleep. She smiled when she saw the blanket on her lap and Aang's backpack open.

"There's a fire! There's a fire!" Aang shouted bouncing up and down.

"Shhh! Aang! Quiet down!" Katara scolded in a hushed tone.

"There's a fire! There's a fire!" Aang whispered.

"Oh, I hope the rain doesn't put it out." Sokka said, obviously not registering what he was talking about.

"Sokka! Snap out of it!" Aang yelled in his face.

"What?" Sokka said, realizing what had happened. "Oh," He grinned. "Sorry."

"Well, let's go check it out." Aang said as he started to walk towards the fire.

"Aang, wait! It could be an enemy." Katara whispered, pulling on Aang's arm.

"Come on Katara." Aang said. Then, low enough that Sokka couldn't overhear, Aang whispered in her ear, "I'll protect you."


	2. Zuko has a sister?

**A/N I hope you liked my first chappie. This is, after all, my very first Fan Fic, so, plz review! Here we go with Chappie numero dos!**

"I'll protect you." Aang whispered.

Katara blushed. She followed Aang, keeping close to him as they made their way toward the fire. Sokka was just a few feet behind them. As they drew nearer to the fire they saw a shape appearing through the darkness.

"What is that?" Sokka asked, breaking the silence.

"It looks kind of like, a tent…" Aang replied, trailing off.

They walked closer and saw that it was, in fact, a tent. It was rather small, appearing to only hold about one or two people. All was silent yet again.

"I wonder who's inside." Katara whispered. She sounded frightened.

Aang picked up the fear in her voice. "Don't be scared Katara." He whispered in her ear. "I'll protect you."

Katara smiled again. "Thanks, Aang."

Sokka noticed the two huddled together whispering back and forth. "Come on, lovebirds. We have a tent to investigate." He grinned his big Sokka grin again. Both Aang and Katara blushed bright red; Sokka could see it even through the darkness. He smiled.

Aang took the first step towards the tent's entrance, which was a small slit in the fabric where people could walk in and out. He cautiously looked around before taking a few more steps, then, deciding it was safe, motioned for the others to follow. Sokka walked forward, but stepped on a branch that was most likely going to be used for more firewood. It made a very loud cracking sound. Sokka mouthed the word "SORRY" to Aang and Katara, who had looked behind them to see what made the sound.

Suddenly, there was movement inside the tent. Aang and Katara looked at each other, and then threw dirty looks to Sokka, who was holding his foot, stretching his mouth open in pain.

"It was full of thorns!" He whispered hoarsely.

Aang and Katara rolled their eyes.

Aang held up his hand for his friends to stop, and they obeyed. Aang continued on to the front of the tent, where he heard very familiar voices. He ran back around to the back of the tent only to hear a hushed fight break out between Sokka and Katara.

"You know, you always do this!" Katara whispered.

"Do what?" Sokka asked, his voice cracking on the word "what".

"We can't be secretive with you around! You blow it every time!"

"Hm... I don't know, you and Aang were pretty secretive on the way ov- OW! Why did you hit me?"

"Stop talking about me and Aang! You're the real problem here!"

Aang figured this was a good time to come in. "I know who's in the tent!"

"Really? Who?" Katara asked, forgetting about her argument with Sokka.

"Zuko and Iroh!" Aang exclaimed.

"Isn't that a bad thing? They're Fire Benders." Sokka asked, confused at the smile spread wide across Aang's face.

"No!" Aang replied happily. "They can teach me to Fire Bend!"

"But they're Fire Benders! Fire + Bender + us BAD NEWS!" Sokka repeated.

"Yes, we know, you've already said that. Now be quiet and listen to Aang. Go on." Katara said with a smile.

"Don't you guys see? They've been cast out of the Fire Nation by Azula!" Aang said.

"How do you know?" Sokka asked.

"Who's Azula?" Katara asked over top of Sokka.

"I heard them talking about it. Azula is Zuko's sister." Aang replied. "So? Let's go guys!"

"Go where?" Sokka asked.

"Zuko has a sister?" Katara asked over top of Sokka again.

"To talk to them, of course. And, yes, Zuko has had a sister for his whole life. Come on!" And with that, Aang was off to the front of the tent again. Sokka had his mouth wide open, thinking, _Man that kid really needs to listen more._ He looked at Katara. She shrugged and followed Aang. Sokka had no choice but to follow Katara.

**A/N Yea, I know, this one was kind of boring and.. But I promise in the next chapter, they will meet up with Zuko and Iroh and all that jazz… plz review! I beg of you! ;p; jk but seriously, review...**


	3. How could I forget The Avatar?

**A/N Okay, time for another chapter! Yippee!**

Sokka had no choice but to follow Katara. With Aang leading the way, Katara following and Sokka bring up the rear, they made their way to the front of the tent, only to find someone already standing there, trying to put out the fire. Suddenly he turned around.

"You?" Zuko shouted at Aang.

"Yea! So, uh, I guess you remember me, huh?" Aang asked.

"How could I forget The Avatar?" Zuko yelled. He lunged towards Aang.

"Aang, do something!" Katara screamed. She sounded really scared.

Aang remembered his promise to Katara: _I'll protect you._ And with those words in mind, he faced Zuko, took his staff and spun it around at light speed, creating a strong, forceful gust of air. He then pushed the air towards Zuko, who fell backwards toward the fire, which Katara had put out using water from Sokka's canteen.

"Why did you do that?" Sokka asked Katara.

"Do what?" Katara said.

"Put out that fire! It was a total waste of water!"

"He would've been seriously hurt! Aang needs Zuko to teach him Fire Bending!"

"What?" Zuko said loudly, getting up from the pile of branches.

Just then, Iroh stepped out from inside the tent.

"What's going on out here? I heard shouting." He asked Zuko.

He then saw Aang, Katara, and Sokka.

"The Avatar!" He gasped. "What are you doing here? What's going on, Zuko?"

"Yes, Uncle, It's The Avatar. He wants me to teach him Fire Bending." Zuko answered calmly, not taking his eyes off Aang.

"And?" Iroh asked. "Are you going to teach him?"

"What? Why would I teach The Avatar Fire Bending?" Zuko asked his uncle, outraged.

"Because once Aang defeats the Fire Lord-" began Katara.

"That's my father you're talking about!" Zuko yelled at her, creating a thick strip of fire which he moved around in the air, showing his anger. He sent the fire soaring towards her.

"A father that chose his daughter over you to rule the Fire Nation with him?" Sokka cut in with a sly grin.

Zuko just grunted, diminishing the fire a few inches from Katara's head. "Well, if you want to take down the Fire Lord, you'll have to take down Azula first. She'll never let you get to my father." He frowned.

"But you will not be able to defeat Azula if you have not learned Fire Bending. She is extremely skilled." Iroh said to Aang. "Zuko and I will be pleased to teach you. Right, Zuko?"

"Right, Uncle." Zuko answered obediently.

**A/N Yea, I know, kind of short, but more actiony hopefully. Numero four comes with reviews! So please review! I know, my storys kinda boring so far, but don't worry, in the next few chapters, therell be some Zutara and Kataang action. Aang will also learn to fire bend. **


	4. I even saw a little bit of drool!

**Yea, I know I said numero four comes with reviews, but I was bored, so, here we go… I think you'll like this one a bit better. In this chapter Aang will start to Fire Bend, and there's gonna be a little Zutara and Kataang action. Or at least Zutara in this one. Kataang comes later on…**

"Right, Uncle." Zuko answered obediently.

"Well, you can't Fire Bend on an empty stomach, now can you? Let's all come inside." Iroh said kindly and pulled away one side of the opening to reveal two hammocks set up. They stretched from one wall of the tent to the other, so it was quite difficult to move around. Iroh pointed at a very small table set up in one of the corners of the tent. "Enjoy." He said as he pointed to the table. Aang, Katara and Sokka looked where he was pointing. But as soon as they laid their eyes on what was there, they really wished they hadn't looked at all. On the table were five dead, bloody meerkats stacked on top of each other; their arms and legs dangling off the sides of the table. Cloths were put down so no blood got on the floor of the tent. Their insides had obviously been taken out, because they were sitting in a bowl on the table, next to the meerkats' lifeless bodies. In the corner opposite from the meerkats were two spears, dripping with what the three children guessed to be meerkat blood.

"Ewww..." Sokka said; his face twisted in a disgusted grimace.

"Be grateful. This will be your lunch, breakfast, and dinner for the next few days." Zuko said with an evil smile.

"Oh, but for dessert, we have speared bobcat! Those are much harder to find, but they taste so good!" Iroh said with a smile.

"Are they gonna look like _that_?" Sokka asked, pointing to the meerkats.

"If you get on my nerves they will." Zuko said, advancing on Sokka.

"Okay, okay, okay." Sokka said disbelievingly.

"Well, if no one's hungry, I guess it's time to hit the sack. Goodnight." Iroh said, and blew out the burning candle inside of a lantern hanging by his bed.

"We three will sleep outside. Goodnight everyone." Aang said.

"Goodnight." Katara and Sokka said in unison.

Once outside, Katara asked Aang, "Do you think they'll actually do it? I mean, do you think they're going to teach you Fire Bending?"

"Yea! Isn't it great? Now I can defeat the Fire Lord!" Aang said excitedly.

"How do we know we can trust them? I mean, what if they just said that to get us out here. Then when they have us right where they want us, they're gonna come and kill us in our sleep!" Sokka said, hiding under his blanket.

"Sokka, don't be ridiculous. They would never do anything like that." Katara said. She smiled broadly at the tent where Iroh was fast asleep. But Zuko was sitting up in his hammock, not the least bit tired. He was thinking about Katara. He didn't know why, but he couldn't stop thinking about her. She was so beautiful and kind. He remembered the way she had saved him from falling on those scorching flames. He kept thinking about her until he finally fell asleep, when he dreamt about her until morning.

Outside, Aang noticed Katara staring at the tent and smiling widely. She looked as if she were in a daze. Aang snapped his fingers in front of her face, and she looked around.

"What?" Katara asked, clueless.

"You were staring at the tent, smiling weirdly. I think I even saw a little bit of drool." Sokka said, coming out from underneath his blanket. He laughed at his own joke.

"Oh… I'm sorry. I didn't realize… I was just thinking…" Katara couldn't think of a way to finish any of those sentences without giving away what she was really thinking about- Zuko. He seemed so rebellious and dangerous. Katara thought he was absolutely amazing.

That night Aang slept a little uneasily. He didn't know what Katara meant by what she said earlier, but he had a good idea. He loved Katara, and he didn't want her to like someone else. Aang doubted he could ever tell Katara his feelings now, and he was starting to think she didn't feel the same way anyway.

In the morning, Aang woke up before anyone else. He stood up, put away his sleeping things, and took a look inside the tent. Iroh was still asleep, but Zuko was sitting on his hammock, with his head in his hands.

"Hey Zuko." Aang said as he cautiously stepped into the tent.

Zuko looked up and smiled. That probably makes the first time in like, ever. **(A/N ;p;)**

"So you're serious about taking on the Fire Lord, huh?" Zuko asked Aang.

"Yes. As the Avatar, I believe it is my duty to restore peace, balance and tranquility to The Fire Nation, The Water Tribes, The Earth Kingdom and The Air Nomads." Aang replied, standing straight and tall. Then a smile broke out on both boys' faces. "But I do want peace and balance to be restored. And as the Avatar, I think I can do that. But I need your help, Zuko. Will you help me?" Aang asked, breakin' out the puppy dog pout.

Zuko was silent for a minute. Then he said, "I will help you learn Firebending, and I will fight by your side when you take on Azula. But I cannot help you take down my father." He got very quiet. "I'm sorry, Aang."

"I understand. Wait, you called me Aang." Aang said.

"Yea? So?" Zuko asked.

"Well, nothing, it's just that you usually call me "The Avatar". That's all."

"Well, Aang, times have changed." Zuko said with an unfathomable expression on his face.

"Yea." Aang replied, remembering the look on Katara's face the previous night. "Well, can we get started please?"

"Yea. Let's go outside."

So Aang and Zuko went back outside the tent. Sokka, who was packing up his sleeping materials, took absolutely no notice of the two boys coming out, but Katara, who was also packing up, dropped her blanket as soon as she saw Zuko emerge from the tent behind Aang. Sokka looked at her with a confused expression on his face, then followed her gaze to Aang and Zuko. He smiled. He thought Katara was smiling at Aang again, when she was actually looking solely at Zuko. _He's so perfect, _Katara thought. Zuko looked at Katara. _I'll bet she likes Aang. Just look at the way she's staring at him, _Zuko thought.

"Hey guys!" Katara began casually. "Hey Zuko, are you going to teach Aang Firebending today?"

"Huh uh." Zuko replied quietly. "Ok Aang, are you ready?" He asked, going around the pile of firewood and towards the open desert.

"As ready as I'll ever be." Aang replied.

"Okay, Aang, you must be like a predatory animal. Track your prey until shows weakness, then go in for the KILL!" Zuko said loudly. "In Firebending, there are not many defensive moves, so you must make up for it with your passionate blows of fire. There are a variety of shapes and different ways to make the shape you want." Zuko went on.

"So can you make, like, a fire blast in the shape of an airplane? Or a dog? Or winged-lemurs?" Sokka asked, indicating Momo, Aang's pet lemur, who had slept through most of the time they had been with Zuko and Iroh.

"No!" Zuko shouted. "Not those shapes. Let me demonstrate." With that Zuko stepped back and faced the pile of firewood. With an angry look on his face, he made a short, quick jab at the air with his fist and fire came careening from his body towards the firewood. "Your turn." He told Aang, not even bothering to look back at the huge fire he just created.

**A/N Ok well.. Aang kinda sorta learned Firebending there. But in the next Chappie, Aang will do all sorts of Firebending moves and find what it takes to be Firebender. Also: Zuko and Katara's relationship starts to unfold. How will Aang take the news? Can he use it to his advantage?**


	5. He loves me?

**A/N Okay, and here we go with chapter number 5. I believe in this one there's gonna be lots more Zutara action and Aang's gonna find out that his feelings for Katara will help him learn Firebending.**

"Your turn" Zuko told Aang. Zuko went over and stood next to Katara. He made sure his arm brushed up against hers. Katara swooned.

"Okay. I can do this. Piece of cake." Aang said. He positioned himself in front of the fire. He took a deep breath and mimicked Zuko's actions. But nothing happened. "What happened?"

"Absolutely nothing." Sokka said flatly.

"Sokka!" Katara said, exasperated.

'What happened, Zuko?" Aang asked.

"You need to put more feeling into it." Zuko told Aang. "Show more anger."

"But I'm really not an angry person." Aang told him.

"Well get angry then." Zuko said, staring at Aang fiercely.

Aang thought about getting angry. "I don't think I can do it. I can't think of anything that would make me angry."

"Well then I guess you just can't become a Firebender and live up to everyone's expectations of you being the Avatar." Zuko said with an unfathomable expression on his face.

"I guess I'll just have to keep on trying then." Aang said through gritted teeth. And that's just what he did. Aang repeated the steps Zuko showed him over and over again, but each time the outcome was the same. "That's it. I give up. I guess the world will just have to survive without the Avatar."

"Aang, you can't give up." Katara told him. "Without you, the Fire Nation will take over all other Kingdoms. The people need you, Aang. Please keep trying."

"Okay, okay. I'll keep trying." Aang said unhappily. He knew inside many people would suffer if he didn't defeat the Fire Lord. _It sucks to be the Avatar. Why is such an important task left up to me? I'm just a kid. Katara will give me support, _Aang thought, looking over to her.

_Wait. Why is she looking at Zuko? Why is Zuko standing so close to her?_ _What's up with that?_ _What are they doing? Why are they smiling like that? What are they talking about? _Aang was really worried. _Am I losing Katara? No! What are they doing? Why is she holding his arm? Stop! Stop! No! Don't brush her hair out of her face! I brush her hair out of her face! That's my job! Mine! Leave her alone! She doesn't even like you! She likes me! No... She does like me, doesn't she? I mean, come on, she has to like me. I told her I would protect her, and she said… wait… what did she say? She said, "Thanks, Aang." Doesn't that mean something? Doesn't that mean like, "Thanks Aang. I love you too?" Come on, Katara! Stop it! No! Stop whispering with Zuko! Katara! I thought… I thought you loved… me._

A tear came to Aang's eye. _I'll show her. I'll show them all. I'll show them I can be a great Firebender; way better than Zuko, anyway. Zuko doesn't deserve her! I deserve her! I love her! I LOVE KATARA! They want to see anger; I'll give them anger! This one goes straight to you, Zuko! _

And with that last thought, Aang jabbed the air with his fist. Fire came shooting out of his hand and towards the sticks that had been patiently waiting on the ground. Zuko's fire was nothing compared to the one Aang just created. The only one that seemed to notice what happened was Sokka, who, like the sticks, had also been patiently waiting on the ground. Sokka stood up, his mouth open wide. He didn't believe what just happened.

"Aang!" He said. "You did it!" He sounded relieved.

Katara and Zuko looked over to Aang, and then to the fire.

"Wow. That's beautiful." Katara said, looking over at Zuko.

Zuko nodded towards her and smiled. Then he turned to Aang with the same unfathomable expression he had on before. Aang really couldn't tell if Zuko was pleased or angry with him.

"Well done." Was all he said.

"Aang, that was great!" Katara said and walked over to him.

"Not like you were watching." Aang said, looking at his shoes.

"What do you mean? Of course I was watch-"

'No!" Aang cut her off. 'You weren't. You were too busy watching Zuko."

Katara was speechless.

"I- I didn't think… I- I mean, I didn't know…" She was at a loss for words.

"Save it Katara. Just go talk about it with Zuko. You guys must talk about everything now." Aang shot at her. He walked towards Sokka.

"What was that all about?" Sokka asked him.

"Nothing." Aang snarled, and walked past the tent and into the desert.

_In the tent (As Aang walks into the desert)_

"I'm worried about him." Katara told Iroh (who had woken up as Katara walked into the tent, followed by Zuko and Sokka.) She turned to the others. "I don't understand why he got so mad."

"What? Who's mad?" Sokka said, clueless.

"Aang really scared me back there." Katara was worried about him.

"He scared you? How?" Sokka asked his sister.

"I mean, I don't think I've ever seen him like this before." Katara said, biting her lip.

"Like what? Are we still talking about Aang?" Sokka cut in.

"What do you think Zuko?" Katara asked him.

"What? Why are you asking him? Why don't I get to express my opinions?" Sokka said, outraged.

"I don't know what to say. All I know is that the anger that he seemed to find really helped him with his Firebending." Zuko replied.

"Yes, but it really destroyed anything he ever had with Katara." Sokka said in a mocking tone.

Everyone looked at Sokka when he said that.

"What do you mean "anything he ever had with me"?" Katara asked her brother

"Oh, come on, Katara. Everybody knows Aang likes you. You should have seen the way he was smiling at you the other night. He's in love with you, Katara; he really, really is." Sokka told her.

Katara just stood there, dumbfounded.

'He- He's in love with me?" Katara repeated.

"Yes, Katara." Sokka said softly.

"Oh my gosh." Katara said to herself. "I can't believe this." She was thinking of Aang, looking around the room. Everyone was looking at her. She turned around and remembered Zuko. "Oh my gosh." She said again.

"What's wrong Katara?" Zuko asked soothingly.

"I- I just, I don't know." She said and ran from the tent towards the open desert.

**A/N Ok, so how did you like that one? I tried my best, so please review! Tell me what you thought of the previous chapters and give me some ideas for the next few. Thanks!**


	6. Author's Note

**A/N Ok, I thought it over, and I think I'm going to rewrite this story. I think the chapters are a little short, so I'm gonna combine some of them. There's gonna be most of the same material, so don't expect much difference, but I might add some stuff and take away some stuff, too. Please keep reading and reviewing anyway! The new story will be back up right away!**


	7. Sorry kidds

**A/N Sorry, guys, but I'm not gonna bother finishing this story. I'm not getting a lot of reviews, and I have another story to work on, so I'm gonna quit this one. It got kinds lame and boring to write.**


	8. Yet another Author's Note

**A/N Ok, I know, this is like, my third Author's Note, but, what can I say? There's actually a lot to say, that's why there are so many Author's Notes here. Since you guys obviously want me to continue, I will, but I'm not going to redo the chapters. That would take too long. So, I will attempt to balance this Avatar Fic and my other HM Fic equally. But I'll need reviews for every chapter to continue! So please keep reviewing!**


	9. Aang, you are my everything

**A/N Ok, sorry it took so long, but I had a severe case of writer's block. But here's chapter number 9. P.S. This is in Katara's POV.**

"I- I just, I don't know." I said and ran from the tent towards the open desert.

_I can't believe it. I should have seen the signs. I- I just, I can't believe it. Aang loves me? That just doesn't make any sense. I mean, now I realize- He loves me? Why me? I mean, what makes me so special? I'm not that pretty, and I really can't think of any qualities I have that would make him _love _me. He loves me. Wait a minute. He loves me. Aang loves me. I love Aang and Aang loves me. I have to find him. I have to tell him. But wait. He'll never forgive me. He probably hates me now. No. I have to push that thought away from my mind. I just have to find Aang. Where is he? I've been running for like, an hour, How far could he have gotten? Where are you Aang? I need to find you! I need you! Wait, what's that? What is that? Oh my gosh! It's Aang! He's just sitting there, looking all sad. It makes me feel horrible. Finally! I've found him! Aang! Aang! Oh, please don't hate me._

"Hey Aang."

"Katara?"

"Yea. Listen Aang I'm really sorry." I said, sitting down. _And I meant that, by the way._

"Yea sure." _He didn't seem to want to forgive me._

Aang, can I tell you something?" _Here goes. _

"What?" _Man, he seemed surly. I really didn't want to hurt him._

"I love you Aang." _Please don't hate me for saying that._

"What?" _Oh my gosh he hates me._

"I love you. I always have. I didn't think you liked me back, so I turned my attention to Zuko. But now I see that I don't love him. I love you."_ Oh my gosh. He still hates me. Wait. He's actually smiling! Yay! He's smiling! That must be good._

"I love you too, Katara." _Oh my gosh! He loves me back! He doesn't hate me! Yes! Oh my gosh! He's getting closer to me! This isn't exactly where I thought I would have my first kiss, but this is exactly the person I have always dreamed about having it with. Wait. Why did he stop? Is it my breath? I should check. Nope, my breath is fine._

"Katara,"_ Oh, he's gonna talk. You know, people think girls always want to talk, but boys talk a lot too._

"What is it Aang?"_ I tried to be sweet._

"You don't still have any trace of feelings for Zuko, right?"_ Oh, so that's it. Of course not, Aang! I LOVE YOU! AND ONLY YOU!_

"Of course not. You're the only person I could ever love."_ I think that says it all._

"I thought so."_ Oh my gosh! He's leaning in again! This is so spectacular! I will never ever forget this moment. Here it comes! His face is right up next to mine! Oh, his eyes are closed. I should probably close mine too. I feel like I'm in heaven! Man, Aang is a good kisser. He really knows what he's doing, doesn't he? No! Don't let go. I want to stay like this forever. I opened my eyes. Aang was sitting back, so I sat back too. _

"Aang,"_ I wanted to tell him how fantastic the last few seconds (was it really that short) were._

"Shh. You don't have to say anything."_ He's putting his finger on my lips! That is so dreamy. Ok, why are we now standing up? I wonder… Yay! My fantasies are all coming true! He's holding me close and pulling me into yet another kiss. His kisses melt my heart! I love you, Aang. I love you so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so, so , much!_

"Aang, you are my everything."_ I knew that would make him smile._

**A/N Ok, I know, short, but sweet. That was an interesting chapter to write. I'm gonna have to change one of my genres to romance now. LOL Please review this chapter! P.S. I need 4 reviews to continue. P.S.S. I totally wanted to write "You know, Like Kindergarten" in there (from High School Musical, if you guys have ever seen that movie. It's on Disney Channel, and is now becoming a DVD. It's an adorable movie.) but I resisted the urge. LOL PLEASE REVIEW!**


	10. It's gonna be okay, now

**I think this is gonna be my last chapter, so here you go. Oh, by the way, I want to thank all of you reveiwers. Without you, this story would have never gotten finished.**

"Let's go back to camp, Aang, I think the others will miss us." Katara told Aang.

"Sure. I think I'm ready to start Fire Bending again. I'm really psyched to beat that stupid Fire Lord." They laughed as they made their way back to camp. When they walked through the entrance, Sokka spun around angrily.

"Where have you been? I was worried sick!"

"Let them be, Sokka. I think it is time Aang continued his training." Iroh cut in.

"Yes, that sounds good." Aang agreed. They all went outside and Iroh stood before the desert. He demonstrated a simple Fire bending move which created a strip of fire that you can control using your hands. Aang imitated his movements and was getting better and better. He could now complete more complex moves.

"I think he is ready." Iroh concluded after 6 long, harsh days of training.

"Really? You think so?" Aang asked excitedly.

"I'm unsure, Uncle." Zuko questioned. "I don't know if he's ready to give the effort needed. Azula is quite the competitor." He looked doubtfully at Aang, who smiled back sweetly.

"I think he is ready. With you by his side, he will prevail." Iroh answered. Aang beamed. The next day, Aang, Katara, Zuko, Sokka and Iroh set out toward the Fire Nation in search of Aang's newest foe. All were thinking along the same lines.

_I can't wait to fight Azula!_

_I hope the young Avatar is ready to take on Azula. _

_Aang will never be ready to fight Azula. Why are we helping him?_

_Aang will do so well in the fight against Azula! Though I am also sort of worried about him._

_I'll bet the Fire Nation doesn't even have any trees. I'll bet they burned them all to the ground. What idiots._

(Well, maybe not everyone. LOL Can you guess whose thoughts were whose? It's pretty simple.)

Soon they reached the outskirts of the Fire Nation.

"Are we just gonna go in there with the Avatar and two banished Fire Benders?" Sokka asked.

"Yeah. We don't wanna hide, Sokka, we wanna fight." Katara pointed out. Sokka said nothing.

"Well, we'd better get going." Zuko said, leading them into streets of crowded people. There were guards everywhere; they stood at the entrance to every shop, and were also placed randomly around the streets, keeping a watchful eye on all of the bustling people. Zuko kept himself hidden among the people, while Aang just walked out into the open. Before long, a guard had spotted him and Katara and had begun to chase after him.

"It's the Avatar!" One guard said to another. "Get him!" Aang hardly put up a fight. His plan was to get him and Zuko captured, and when the time came, talk Azula into fighting them. The others would wait outside, and if things got bad, go in to help them out. It wasn't really very difficult, or so he thought.

"If you're going to take him, you'll have to take me too!" Katara burst out suddenly.

"Katara, that wasn't part of the plan!" Aang whispered.

"Aang, I can't just sit here while you face your ultimate doom! I love, you, Aang."

"I love you, too, Katara. But that's just it! If you really loved me, you would let Zuko and I do this alone. I don't want you to get hurt. Please. Only come if things get bad. That will really get my spirits up." He smiled at her as he let her hand go. She was lost in the crowd once more.

"Come on Avatar." The guard said.

"Hey, Randolph! Look what I found!" A guard came up to them with Zuko in his clutches.

"I thought I told you to call me Eric!" Randolph shouted. The other guard shrugged. "Come on; let's take them to see Azula." The boys smiled at each other secretly as the guards shoved them to the palace. (I have no idea if it was a palace or w/e) Once there they were taken to a hug room with only one huge chair in the center. Sitting in it was the one and only Azula. She smiled when she saw what the guards were holding.

"Well done, my minions. Leave us!" She waved her hand and they disappeared out the door. "Well, well, well, what do we have here? The Avatar? And, oh no, Zuko? Is that you? I thought you were banished. What are you doing back here?" She had a nasty tone.

"You think you're so great, huh?" Aang said to her, unafraid.

"Oh my, you really don't know who you're talking to, do you?" Azula said, almost laughing.

"Fight us, and prove that you're as great as you say you are!" Aang said, advancing on her. She arose from her chair and stepped toward them.

"Very well." She sent a blast of fire toward them, but they both easily blocked it some with Fire bending of their own. In turn, Aang created a whip of fire that he was able to control with his hands and feet. He moved it around Azula and finally sent it flying at her. She was too quick. She easily dodged the whip and threw an enormous ball of fire at Aang and then Zuko. Zuko got hit and fell to the floor. Aang went down to him.

"It's alright. I'll be fine. Aang," He began. His breaths were short.

"Yeah?"

"Finish her off." He said, and his head fell to the floor in pain. He held his chest as Aang stood up with an angry look on his face. He sent blast after blast of hot fire towards Azula, who was starting to get scared. Suddenly, he surprised her with a fierce Air Bending move in which he pounded his staff to the ground and sent a huge wave of air all around him, leaving nothing undisturbed. The chair behind Azula had toppled over, and when she moved backwards, she tripped on it and fell over. Aang stood, towering above her, and with a sweep of his arm, he performed a simple Fire bending move that took Azula's life from her. He stood there, looking at her lifeless body, and smiled. Suddenly, he remembered Zuko. He raced over and knelt down beside him.

"Zuko, Zuko!" He shook Zuko until his eyes opened the slightest bit.

"Is she gone?" Zuko asked him faintly.

"Yeah, she's…gone." He answered, sadly looking at his mangled body.

"It's gonna be okay, now. You have to go on, Aang. I can't do this to my father, but I know you can."

Just then Sokka, Katara and Iroh burst through the doors. They thought there was trouble when the palace shook because of Aang's air wave. They ran to Zuko and Aang and knelt down beside them.

"Is he okay?" Katara asked.

"I don't know." Aang replied.

"We need to get him out of here." Sokka said, rising to his feet. They others nodded. Katara and Iroh stood up and talked about where they were going to take Zuko to get him cleaned up. Aang stayed crouched down and softly spoke to Zuko.

"It's gonna be okay, Zuko. We're going to take you somewhere to make you feel better. It'll be okay." Aang told him over and over. Zuko smiled.

"Thank you, Avatar."

**THE END!**

**Happy birthday to me! Finally done. That last chapter was kinda sucky, but, w/e. Now I can work more on my other newer ideas.**


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